Pandora's Box
by HappyTheDragon
Summary: A mysterious Wu by the name of Pandora's box reveals itself. When the monks go to retrieve it, they have a run in with the reptilian prince of darkness. Somehow along the way, Kimiko ends up in the hands of the Heylin in a most unexpected manner.
1. Chapter 1

Kimiko leaned on the window frame in the the temple out-looking the training grounds. Despite being the dragon of fire, the sun was far too bright for her liking, so she stayed inside and watched the guys play a game of soccer. Dojo was lazily perched on the window sill next to Kimiko as she absentmindedly scratched behind his ears, something she found relaxed the usually anxious dragon. She had been here for four years now and she couldn't see herself leaving anytime soon. She had to admit, she had grown attached to the boys and had become accustomed to this way of life, though she was occasionally homesick. She giggled as Raimundo tried to correct Omi's slang only to have him misuse it even more. She let out a relaxed sigh. Things had been hectic between the Xiaolin and the Heylin lately, so they rarely had a chance to relax like this. Today had been an uneventful day, so far.

As soon as the thought had crossed her mind, she felt Dojo shiver. She quickly retracted her hand and looked down at him. _Please don't say it, _she thought. "Shen-gon-wu alert!" She dropped her head; so much for a relaxing day. The boys stooped what they were doing and looked over at the shivering dragon as he slithered out of the temple, the only female warrior present following closely. Dojo super-sized and waved them over as he shivered again. "Come on kiddos, no time to waste. This one feels important." He shivered again.

In seconds, the Xiaolin warriors were settled on the dragon's back and had taken to the skies. Raimundo leaned over Kimiko's shoulder as she extended the scroll in front of her. "So, what is it this time?" he asked craning his neck. Omi scooted closer to watch the animations on the shen gon wu scroll. There was a glowing box and a man. The man opened the box. Shadows came out of the box. The shadows swallowed the man. Finally, an orb of light emerged from the box.

"Pandora's Box," Kimiko replied.

"If y'all ask me, these pictures don't make much sense." Clay commented, scratching his head.

Kimiko tilted her head, "Hmm... maybe it's like that Greek mythology story. You know, the one where that girl opens the box holding all the world's misfortune," she explained.

"Oh yes, that sounds most accurate. A girl would be most foolish to open such a dangerous box!" Omi exclaimed with a pointed finger. Kimiko glared at him.

"Well, if it's as dangerous as you say it is, this is one we can't let fall to the Heylin." Dojo told them as he made his descend. "We're here, I can feel it." They landed in front of Greek ruins. The ground was uneven and covered mostly in rubble and dust. There were broken pillars protruding from the ground in front of a building. Kimiko stared at the building's entrance. She squinted and began to mindlessly walk towards it, completely unnoticed by the boys, all of who were distracted by the sound of an approaching helipack.

"Jack Spicer!" Omi pointed at the approaching figure in the sky, "prepare yourself for a most humiliating defeat."

"Xiaolin losers, great to see you again. Not! Jack-bots, attack!" At once, the monks were swarmed by robots.

Kimiko stood at the entrance of the Greek styled temple. She couldn't see any further than two feet inside. The darkness seemed to swallow everything in the temple, and as Kimiko stepped in, she too, was swallowed up by the darkness. The light of her PDA was enough to light her way. _The wu should be this way, I know it is._ She sighed, "I sound like Dojo." She continued down the seemingly never ending hall, taking in all the decor and trying her best not to let the eerie silence get to her. The endless hall had countless marble statues lining the walls with an occasional priceless vase depicting a story from mythology. She stopped looking at the walls in awe when she noticed a glimmer out of the corner of her eye. She looked in the direction of the glow and saw a silver light at the end of the hall. "Finally!" She took off in a sprint down the rest of the hall. The faster she collected the wu, the faster she could get out of here. She came to a halt right in front of the big black box emitting the soft silver glow. It was half her size and she found it peculiar that it was glowing such a color, considering wu usually gave off a golden glow.

"Maybe I should wait until the the guys get here," she voiced to herself. As she thought about what to do while she waited, she had unconsciously knelt before the box. It was as if it was calling to her, asking her to open it, and she gave into the temptation. A shiver ran through her spine as her fingers pushed the box open. In a flash, the room was engulfed in a brilliant light and shadows emerged from the box. Kimiko fell back, looking up at the faceless shadows surrounding her. Omi was never going to let her live this down. She let out a blood-curdling scream before the shadows engulfed her and dragged her into the mysterious box. The box closed on itself and the silver glow that had attracted the curious fire dragon was replaced by the usual golden glow of the shen gon wu. Almost no trace of what had transpired was left, only the the now brightly lit room and Kimiko's belongings scattered about.

Her scream reached the battle scene outside, if one could call it that, and for a moment, everything and everyone stood still. The Shoku warrior tossed the last of the jack-bots aside after having regained his train of thought and turned to the small dragon that had taken refugee behind a fallen pillar. "Dojo, where's Kimiko?" He asked rather calmly.

The dragon looked up at the towering boy nervously, "sh-she went ahead into the temple by herself."

Raimundo clenched his teeth then looked over to his fellow companions. "Let's go, guys. Kim might be in trouble." Omi and clay gave a nod and took off after their leader, leaving Jack behind with his broken robots. "Hey losers! Don't just leave in the middle of a fight!"

When the Xiaolin monks, followed by Jack in the distance, arrived at the temple's entrance, they hesitated entering. "Raimundo," Omi started, "seeing as you are the leader, it is only appropriate that you go first. If I were leader, I would not hesitate to do so in the slightest."

Raimundo glared at the yellow headed monk. "Well, Omi, I wouldn't hesitate either," he defended, "if I could actually see in there!" Omi grinned stupidly at him, as great as he was, he had to admit that not even he could see in such dense darkness.

Seconds later, Jack landed beside them. "What's the matter? Scared?" He teased pulling out a flashlight from his jacket and pointing it into the dark. The light shone on a statue of a vicious looking medusa. Jack let out a shriek and tossed the flashlight into the air.

Raimundo seized the chance and caught it in his hands. He turned to look at Jack with a smirk. "thanks, Spicer. We needed this." He pointed the light into the temple and walked in without another thought of hesitation. Omi and Clay walked after, making sure to stay close to the source of light.

They finally reached the end of the hall and entered a spacious, circular room which, oddly enough, was very well lit. Raimundo turned off the flashlight and stuffed it in his pocket. They'd need it for when they left. The three boys looked around the room awestruck. It must have been filled with hundreds of statues. They lined the walls all the way to the ceiling. At the other end of the room stood a statue taller than the rest with a sword in its hands pointed downwards. The point of the sword was inches from a black box with a faint gold glow. "It's the shen gon wu!" Omi yelled and pointed. He raced towards it slammed his hand down on it at the same time a gloved hand placed itself on it. Immediately, the wu grew brighter. Omi looked up at his opponent.

"Chase Young! I challenge you to a Xiaolin Showdown!"

The tall, reptilian eyed man only looked down at the shorter, round headed boy with a smug look. "Name your game, Omi," he said almost half-bored. Omi took a quick glance at his surroundings before yelling out his challenge.

"My Orb of Tornami against your Serpent's Tail. The one who destroys the most statues win!" At once, their surroundings shifted into a mock arena. Clay, Jack, Raimundo, and Dojo were pulled to the stands. The statues lining the walls became animated. Chase and Omi took their respective fighting stances as hundreds of awakened statues filled the arena. A scoreboard appeared above the arena with zeros filled in for each contestant as a start.

"Gon yi tenpai!" They both yelled, and the showdown begun. The two warriors moved swiftly amongst the horde of statues throwing kicks and punches this way and that. The statues that received their rain of hits crumbled instantaneously and the numbers on the scoreboard rose respectively. At the moment, Omi's score was at 25, whilst Chase's score was at 32. Jack whooped for his idol while the other two monks shouted words of encouragement for their youngest as they cast glances to the side hoping to catch sight of their missing companion somewhere. Chase took notice of the monk's lack of focus and took it as a chance to taunt.

"If you don't keep your mind in the game you won't have a chance of defeating me, although, even if you were focused you'd have no chance of winning." He shot a cocky grin at his opponent then slammed his fist into the heads of two statues.

Omi kicked a statue in the stomach and shot back at Chase, "do not count your ducklings before they have quacked!" The reptilian eyed warrior arched an eyebrow.

"No, Omi!" Raimundo shouted, "it's 'don't count your chickens before they hatch!'"

"That too!"

The two showdown participants continued to slaughter statues until only one statue stood in the middle of the field. Omi lunged at it while Chase stood with his harms nonchalantly folded behind his back. The showdown ended and the ever mysterious Pandora's Box found it's place in the hand's of the Heylin prince. "Sorry, but it seems this is a victory for the Heylin side."

Omi looked down at his feet with shame written on his face. "Oh my friends, I have caused the Xiaolin side a most humiliating defeat. Raimundo placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, don't sweat it, besides, what's most important right now is finding Kimiko." Omi looked up at Raimundo and smiled.

"Yes, you are right. Kimiko is just a frail girl, and who knows what she would do without me. We have no time to waste!" He stuck his finger in the air. Raimundo and Clay looked at each other, rolled their eyes, and joined their friend in his search. Seeing that the monks were no longer paying him any attention, Chase left the temple with the mysterious box he had sought after in his possession.

"Hey Chase, wait up!" Jack flew after his idol holding the rest of the wu from the showdown. And so, the Heylin and the Xiaolin parted ways for the day, neither with the slightest knowledge that Kimiko's fate now rested in the hands of the Heylin.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello! Here is chapter 2. Enjoy.**

"Seriously, how does a girl disappear without leaving a trace?" Raimundo ruffled his hair in frustration.

"Well, I wouldn't say completely without a trace." Dojo called out to the others. The three boys looked over at the small dragon questioningly. He only waved them over with his tiny scaly arms. The three boys acquiesced. Once they arrived to Dojo's position, the dragon pointed at things spread around him. "Look familiar?"

The boys widened their eyes. How had they missed this? "This is what Kimiko was wearing." Raimunto stated.

"And look, her PDA. Kimiko never goes off anywhere without it." Clay added.

"Oh, this is most strange. Why would Kimiko leave her belongings just sleeping around?" Omi asked. Clay and Raimundo didn't bother to correct him.

"Well, wherever she went, she couldn't have gone too far without this." Raimundo pointed out to the others holding up Kimiko's undergarments. Clay tipped his hat to hide his blush. Omi only tilted his head at the object in Raimundo's hands. Was such an object really so important to girls?

"Well, even if she is still here, it's obvious we won't be finding her anytime soon. I don't like this at all, but it is probably best that we return to the temple and alert Master Fung about what happened. We'll come back tomorrow to look again." Dojo reasoned with the boys as he climbed onto Clay's shoulder. The boy's agreed it was their best option for now. They gathered their missing companion's belongings and at last exited the eerie Greek temple. "Great," voiced Raimundo, "how am I supposed to explain to Master Fung that one of his student's just vanished into thin air?"

Elsewhere, a pair of doors swung open as the Heylin prince himself strolled in. The red headed witch who was comfortably seated on his throne bolted to greet him. "Chase, you're back!" She snaked her arms around him at an attempt to make a pass at him.

"Wuya, how many times must I warn you not to touch my throne?" He hissed at her.

"Chase dear, I was simply trying to keep it warm for you." She tried. Chase ignored her lame excuse and occupied himself with the mysterious black box in his arms. He placed it on the floor gently and ran his fingers over its smooth surface. Wuya eyed the box with fascination. "Is that the wu that activated today? Strange, I don't recall seeing it before." She stated with a nasally voice. She was about to reach out for it when Jack appeared behind her.

"Hey Wuya, guess what?" He yelled rather gleefully. The Heylin witch rolled her eyes with apparent annoyance.

"What?"

"Those Xiaolin losers lost one of their own! How lame is that?" He cackled. Wuya smiled in amusement.

"One of the Xiaolin brats went missing? Who?" She directed her questions at Chase to confirm the information. He was still busying himself fingering the mysterious box, but answered nonetheless.

"The dragon of fire." His voice came out in a disinterested monotone. He stood up from his crouched position.

"Kimiko?" The witch reassured if she had heard correctly with growing excitement. "Oh good, my least favorite of the brats." She spun around with a cackle and grabbed hold of Jack. They began to make plans for celebration. Chase waved them off and turned his back to them, readying to leave the nuisance of the duo.

"Do not bother me for the rest of the day. I have important manners to attend to." He began heading towards the door when a sudden thump echoed through the room He spun around to shoot a glare at Jack. The accused immediately threw up his arms defensively.

"Hey, it wasn't me!" He shrunk back. "I-I think it came from the box." He pointed. When another loud thump resounded through the room, he took cover behind Wuya and peered over her shoulder to watch the box. The three present Heylin watched the suddenly lively box patiently, waiting for something to happen. It began to shake. Each time with more effort than the last, as if something inside was desperately trying to get out. At last, the thumps that shook the box ceased. It stood there completely still, as did the Heylin, all of who were unsure of what to do. Wuya was about to speak when whatever was inside the box beat her to it.

"Hello?" spoke the soft, unfamiliar voice. "Is anybody there? I would very much appreciate it if someone let me out." Wuya clamped her mouth shut. Simultaneously, she and Chase turned to look at Jack. The poor albino tried his best to hide himself, but it was useless.

"Why me?" He attempted to come up with an excuse, but it became futile as the two Heylins commanding him hardened their glares. At last, Jack complied with their silent order. He tiptoed halfway to the box and crawled the rest of the way. Once he reached it, he placed two shaky hands on the lid, clenched his eyes shut, and flung the box open. He fell back and crawled away behind Chase's legs to take cover from whatever the box beheld.

A silvery mist came from the box. The shadow of a figure could be seen in the heavy mist. Once the thick cloud of mist was cleared, the first thing the three Heylin beheld was a pair of bright sapphire eyes peering through messy raven colored hair. A patched blanket was wrapped around the tiny figure. "Thanks," the figure bowed to them as it wrapped the blanket around itself tighter. "It was starting to get stuffy in there." The tiny thing looked up at the three bigger figures staring down at her and tilted her head. "Uhm, who are you?"

Jack, who until now had been cowering behind Chase, gained a sudden braveness and turned the question on her. "We should be asking you the same thing." He pointed at what he was now sure of being a little girl accusingly.

"Oh, I'm sorry," she said with a bow, "I'm-" She was interrupted as Chase took the courtesy of lifting her out of the box. His nose twitched.

"…the dragon of fire." Wuya's eyes widened and Jack's jaw dropped.

"What? That can't be Kimiko! She's so tiny, and Kimiko is more…" he moved his hands through the air forming curves.

"E-excuse me." Chase looked down at the small girl he was holding in midair. Her face was turning red. "S-sorry, but would you please put me down? I seem to have… misplaced my clothes, and the blanket you are, uhm, holding me from is all I have." Chase blinked, nodded his head in understanding, and set her down on the floor softly. "Th-thank you."

She readjusted the blanket where it was beginning to slip and looked up at the three unknown people before her, if she could even call them people. They looked like an odd group to her. "How can this be Kimiko?" Wuya questioned, her irritation at not being able to figure out the situation at hand evident in her voice. "She is just a child!"

"I'm seven!" The three taller people in the room looked down at the child's sudden outburst. She covered her face. "I-I'm seven." She repeated shyly, "not just a child."

Chase smirked internally. He called to her attention. "Do you recognize who we are?" Little Kimiko furrowed her eyebrows and shook her head furiously. "I see." Chase closed his eyes in thought. "This must be the work of the Pandora's Box."

"What should we do now, Chase?" Jack inquired, still trying to piece things together. "Should we give her back to the pajama freaks? Though, I doubt they'd even recognize her like this." He reasoned with himself. He poked little Kimiko's head, causing her to shy away from him. Chase's eyes snapped open at Jack's last statement.

"No, they wouldn't recognize her, would they?" A conniving smile overtook his features. "And if my assumptions are correct, the wu has returned her to an age before she joined the Xiaolin temple with the other monks. She knows nothing of the conflict between the Xiaolin and the Heylin. If done correctly, we could influence her present self to converge to the Heylin side. Yes, this can be used to our advantage." He mused to himself. The wheel in the other two Heylin's minds began to turn, and smiles matching Chase's overtook their features as well. Little Kimiko looked up at them in utter bafflement, tilting her head from side to side as the three Heylin present exchanged wicked glances amongst one another.

**Stay tuned for Ch3. **

**P.S. In one of the future chapters, Chase gives little Kimiko a sort of code name. I can't decide between Hotaru, meaning firefly in Japanese, and Huo Fang, meaning fragrant fire in Chinese. I would appreciate if you would let me know what you think. Thank you.  
**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello! I would like to thank those who reviewed, especially the mysterious guest who said they hated this story at first. Thank you, your honesty is appreciated and I'm glad you like it now, lets me know I'm improving. Oh, and it seems that most of you favor the name Hotaru, so I'll take it into consideration. Now, on with the story before I go off on a rant! **

**Enjoy!  
**

The three monks shifted uncomfortably in their positions on the floor. They were all seated in the tea room. Raimundo had finished recounting the details leading up to Kimiko's disappearance to Master Fung. The older monk paced back and forth in front of them as he took in the information. He scratched at his chin then stopped before Raimundo, who had his head hung in shame. "Is that all?" he questioned the young leader of the group.

Raimundo nodded his head, "yes."

"I see," the older man thought for a bit. "Well, there is nothing we can do for Kimiko at the moment. Do not let this situation weigh you down young ones. You are not to blame for your companion's disappearance."

"But Master Fung," Omi argued, "it is due to our negligence that Kimiko, who is so frail without our protection, vanished. If only we had-" Raimundo elbowed Omi for his sexist comment. Master Fung continued to speak in an attempt to lift his student's spirits.

"When the time has come, Kimiko will find her way back to you. For now, you must be patient in your search. Go rest your bones, my young monks, there are longer days ahead." He bowed his head to them, and they respectfully stood from their spots on the floor to mimic his actions. They had hesitated leaving at first, but eventually gave in, deciding that if they were to search near and far for their friend, rest would be necessary. Once they were gone and out of ear shot, Master Fung called out to his loyal green dragon. "Dojo."

The small dragon perked up at the sound of his name. "Yes, Master Fung?"

"The wu you were to retrieve today went by the name of Pandora's Box, correct?" He looked down at the dragon at his feet.

"That's right." Dojo assured him.

"And I have reason to believe that said wu has a sister, true?" He continued to question Dojo. Dojo scratched his chin in thought.

"Hmm, yeah…uh… Pandora's Hope, I think. Don't really remember its purpose, though." Master Fung smiled at the dragon knowingly.

"No, that is all I need to know." Dojo looked at the old man with a puzzled expression. "I have reason to believe that wherever she may be, Kimiko is safe for now, and she will be until this sister wu reveals itself." The old monk's expression then became more serious as he continued. "When the time comes, her fate will be decided depending on the actions taken by both the Heylin and the Xiaolin." Dojo scratched his head and stuck out his tongue as he tried to decode all that Master Fung had just said. What did he mean? He really wished Master Fung, though wise as he may be, would be more straightforward when it came to these kinds of things.

* * *

Little Kimiko stuck her arms out in front of her, letting the sleeves of the shirt she was lent hang over her tiny hands. Chase had sent Spicer and Wuya out to purchase clothes for the little one, but for now she was stuck wearing one of Chase's much-too-big-for-her shirts. A red sash, courtesy of Wuya, was tied around her waist to at least keep the shirt to stay in place. She rolled up the sleeves only to have them fall back over the length of her arms. Her raven black hair was still tousled with flyaways here and there. Her feet were bare and she occasionally hopped from one foot to the other as the floor was cold against the bottom of her feet. Her bright blue eyes looked curiously around the room. Once in a while she locked eyes with one of the many cats that had come to observe her with utmost curiosity. Strangely enough, she was not frightened by the sight of the massive cats; rather she was fascinated at the array of them and found it curious that they obeyed Chase's every command. After giving up on rolling up the sleeves of the shirt she wore, she turned to look at said ring master.

It took her a while to find her voice, but when she finally did, she spoke up shyly. "Uhm… excuse me, Chase?" She said his name with caution, careful not to offend the man that had not yet tossed her out of his home. Chase looked up from the book he had been absorbed in the while that Kimiko spent observing her surroundings.

"Yes?" he asked dryly.

Little Kimiko hesitated for a bit before asking, "Do you know where my father is? I think he might be worried about me." Chase thought for a moment to compose an answer. He expected the child to pose this question sooner or later. Of course she would become curious of the whereabouts of her family. Chase would rather have avoided these questions, but it could not be helped. He would come up with something to make her mind stray away from the subject. Children were easy to manipulate in this way, well, for him anyway.

"No, you were already in the box when we found you, but I imagine your mother must be worried sick about you." He would start by getting information about her family out of her, and then find something that would make going home less desirable. Perhaps offering her a petty freedom that a child always seemed to yearn for would do the trick. Children these days were always complaining about their parents and how they restrained them. This would be easy.

As soon as Chase answered her question, he noticed a sudden change in her mood. She bit her lips, balled up her fists, and looked down at her feet with a bitter expression. Had he already hit the nail on the head? But the way she reacted to his statement was rather strange. Chase was taken by curiosity.

"Come." He commanded. Kimiko complied, as if she had much of a choice and walked up to the side of his throne where he was seated comfortably. She placed her hands on his knee and looked down as to avoid any eye contact with the man before her. "Do you deny your mother's worry?" He probed. He felt her hands shiver against his knee.

"Mama can't worry about me." She answered plainly, her voice shivering ever so slightly. Chase arched an eyebrow.

"What do you mean?" He asked, pressing for her to continue. She braved looking into his eyes.

"It's my fault. I hurt mama and now she can't wake up." Chase did not know whether to be shocked or amused by what he had just heard. What was the child spewing? Had she just admitted to the murder of her own mother? What an interesting twist, for a killer to reside with the Xiaolin, those who represented the utmost good. Chase smirked inwardly at the thought. Now he wanted to know more about the child. He was about to press more on the subject when the doors creaked open and Jack-the-mood-killer walked in holding various boxes and shopping bags.

"Hey Chase, we're back." Wuya walked in behind him annoyed.

"This place they call a mall is the worst place I have ever been to. If I had my powers I could have just snapped something up for her to wear." She complained to all in the spacious room.

"You're only mad because that one store wouldn't let you without shoes." Jack retorted whilst placing the multitude of shopping bags and boxes on the floor beside him. Wuya placed her hands on her hips and glared at the lanky red head. Jack ignored her and instead turned his attention at the presently little Kimiko. "Anyway, Kimiko, you're gonna love what we got you."

Chase paid no attention to the two that had just entered his throne room. Instead, he found himself deeply focused on watching the little girl leaving his side to see what Jack had brought to her. She poked at the boxes curiously and peeked inside the bags. Jack pulled things out of the bags to show her. She reached her hands out to finger the fabrics of the clothing. After having seen a handful of things she bowed to both of the red heads and both thanked and apologized to them gratefully. Wuya soaked it up while Jack nervously laughed and asked her to stop. Chase rested his chin on his hand. She was a rather peculiar child, more mysterious than, perhaps, himself. He would take it as a challenge to unravel the mystery she was shrouded in. Perhaps, this would be more fun than expected.

**So, how did I do adding mystery into this? Stay tuned...**


	4. Chapter 4

**Sorry for the wait. Hardly have time to write lately, but finally a new chapter! Hurrah! Do enjoy.**

It had been a week and the monks were getting anxious. They kept returning to the ruins in hopes of finding something that would lead them to their missing member, but to no avail they continued to return empty handed. In fact, they would come back to the temple each time with fewer results than their last trip. Alas they came to the conclusion that returning to the ruins was useless in their search. They gathered around the table in the dining area for lunch, though none had much of an appetite. Even Clay did not eat as much as he usually ate. The disappearance of their friend had really taken a toll on them. They each felt guilty. They each blamed themselves for her disappearance. Raimundo pushed his food around his plate then dropped his chopsticks to the side. He picked up his chopsticks again and repeated the action. He continued to repeat the action while Omi was struggling with making up his mind on how much rice to serve himself. Clay took silent bites of whatever it was he was eating, though every minute he would push his plate away from himself a little bit more.

"I just don't get it!" Raimundo broke the suffocating silence in the room. He slammed his hands on the table as he stood from his seat. "Someone can't just up and disappear like that!" he reasoned rather loudly. The others only looked at him, unsure of whether to add to his outburst or stay silent as they were.

"But Raimundo," Omi bravely inserted, "we have looked high and low and there has been no signs that say Kimiko has been there."

"Little buddy's got a point there pardner. We looked everywhere we coulda thought of and she just ain't there." Clay tipped his hat as a sort of consolation. Raimundo tossed his head to the side. He ruffled his hair irritation.

"Well that's not enough. She's out there somewhere, probably lost and alone." He sat back down, dropping his head back into his hands. He sighed. "I don't know. There must be something we overlooked, there has to be."

The room became silent again as they thought. They thought about all the events that occurred that day. They got the ruins and almost immediately faced off against Jack and his robots. They defeated Jack then heard Kimiko's scream. They went into the deteriorating dark ruins. Then when they found the wu, they ran into -"Chase!" they all shouted simultaneously and looked at each other wide eyed. They shared the same thought. There was no other explanation. Chase _must _have taken her. It was rather suspicious that he was the only one present at the site right after the incident. Their looks hardened.

"I swear, if Chase did anything to hurt her," Raimundo clenched his fists on the table. Clay put a hand on the leader's shoulder, trying to calm him down.

"Settle down pardner. We can't be all too sure that he has her, but if he does we'll get 'er back safe an' sound."

"Oh yes." Omi chimed in, "we shall rescue Kimiko from Chase's claws, though I doubt he would do something so below the hand." He finished with assuredness. Clay and Raimundo looked at him quizzically.

"Uh, underhanded," Raimundo corrected, "and this is an evil overlord we're talking about, they're all about underhandiness." He emphasized his statement by waving his hands in front of the others. At that moment Dojo slithered in followed Master Fung who had his hands tucked away in his sleeves.

"Hey kids, any clues yet?" Dojo asked a bit concerned. He had been more anxious and shaky since Kimiko vanished, considering she was the only one that knew about which spot to scratch behind his ears.

"Yes. We have reason to believe that Chase has Kimiko." Omi filled them in, telling them all about how they had come to the conclusion.

"Is that so?" inquired Master Fung. Raimundo stepped forward with confidence.

"Yeah. Now me and the guys gotta hatch a plan to infiltrate Chase's place and find her." Master Fung arched an eyebrow at his disciple's quick decision. He looked at them in all seriousness.

"I understand your concern for your friend young ones, but it is dangerous for you to venture into the territory of a powerful foe." He told them. His voice was heavy and authoritative, causing his students to tense up.

"We can handle it. We've defeated Chase before, we can do it again." Raimundo reasoned with a cocky grin, trying to loosen up only to straighten up again.

"Yes," Master Fung agreed, "but that was when all four of you were together. Now that you are missing one, it is the same as missing an arm." The three younger monks looked down at their feet disheartened. The older monk was right. With the absence of Kimiko, defeating Chase Young would prove more difficult than before. "If you were to go as you are now, you would not only be endangering yourselves, but you would be endangering Kimiko as well. This is why I forbid you to go."

All three of the monks snapped their heads up at the older monk's command, ready to pose an argument. Noticing this, Master Fung quickly added, "there is no point in arguing. I will not change my mind. For now, return to your quarters, we will discuss this further tomorrow." He hardened his features as Raimundo gave him a fierce glare. Raimundo turned his back on the man and nearly stormed out of the room. The other two silently followed.

Dojo watched them go from the door then turned back to his beloved old monk. "Was that really the best way to handle it?" Master Fung closed his eyes and sighed.

"It is best for now. At their age they are still rash in making decisions. I don't want to lose them all to the brashness of youth." They both looked out the door at the over bearing sunset in silence. Hopefully things wouldn't get out of hand.

* * *

Little Kimiko laid panting on the floor. Chase stood over her with his usual cold expression. "Tired already?"

Kimiko forced her arms to push herself up. They shook as she put weight on them. They gave in on her frail little form and she collapsed back on the floor. She breathed an apology to Chase. "S-sorry." Chase furrowed his brows and walked around her.

"I suppose it's an improvement from yesterday's pitiful training session." Kimiko remained silent and still from her spot on the floor. Seeing as she made no movement, Chase continued, "Training is done for today. Report to dinner by seven." He looked down at his new acquaintance's beaten form then exited the spacious training room without another word.

Kimiko's lips quivered as she heard the doors shut. She was left once again in the unbearable silence broken only by the soft padding of paws across the cold floor. A white Siberian tiger approached her and nudged her head. She moaned and sunk her head deeper into her arms. The tiger nudged her head again. This time little Kimiko lifted her head to look at the tiger with annoyance. The Siberian tiger tilted its head and Kimiko's face fell. "Sorry Nadja." She apologized to it. It licked her cheek and laid down next to her. Little Kimiko sunk her head back into her bruised arms allowing only one of her eyes to peer out at the tiger.

"He's mad at me again, isn't he? Nadja." She addressed the tiger lying next to her. It only looked back at her with its intense blue eyes. Her visible eye drooped with sadness. "I can't meet up to his expectations. I'm sorry."

Her lips quivered again. Nadja understandingly looked down at its paws. Kimiko buried her head deeper into her arms. Nadja placed a paw on Kimiko's head and nudged her. Little Kimiko looked up at him again. Knowing that he had her attention, he dropped his head on his paws and pulled back his ears, looking intently at Kimiko. She giggled and stretched out a hand, gently placing it on the white fur of the tiger's neck.

This afore mentioned tiger, which she had named Nadja, was the only one out of Chase's cats that had come to befriend her in the week she had spent here. The other cats either ignored her or growled at her when she passed by. Nadja, however, seemed to have become her only companion here and followed her everywhere she went in the citadel. At first, Chase had been a bit wary about one of his warriors showing loyalty to anyone but him. He came to terms with it eventually. As long as it did not cause him any trouble, he didn't care much. Kimiko was happy he allowed her to have this one friend, considering that when she asked to contact her father, he denied her, telling her that if she wished she could write letters to her father and he, Chase, would personally deliver them. Kimiko showed Nadja kindness the same as Nadja had shown her.

She whispered a "thank you" to her dear new friend and removed her hand from the spot on his neck. The tiger looked at her kindly. Kimiko laid her head back on the ground and closed her eyes.

When she had woken up, she rushed to the room had offered her to stay in to bathe and change into garments that didn't reek of her sweat. Once out of the bath, she pulled the wardrobe doors open. The piece of furniture was overflowing with clothes Jack had given her, and lining the bottom were a dozen pairs of shoes. She pulled out a white long sleeve turtle neck, a pair of black overall shorts, and white tennis. She pulled a pair of black and gray striped stockings over her legs. Once dressed, she brushed her hair to the side and clipped it with a blue bow. She looked at her appearance in the full length mirror to make sure she was presentable, and then gave a slight nod of approval at her reflection.

She sprinted out of the room and down the hall with Nadja on her trail. If she was late again Chase would be sure to scold her. She skidded to a stop as she came in front of the dining room's door. She caught her breath, straightened herself then quietly pushed the door open. She slid in with Nadja.

A low woman's voice reached her ears and she looked up quickly recognizing the owner. "Oh, the brat's finally here, and she brought her kitty, too." Kimiko looked at the red headed woman who was observing her with a coy smile. Chase looked up from a newspaper he was looking over. Wuya continued to look at the little girl with a wicked smile. Kimiko had come to a halt as soon as she had seen Wuya. Little Kimiko was not sure why, but she felt discomfort whenever the woman was around.

"Well?" Kimiko looked over at Chase. Seeing he had caught her attention he tossed his head to the chair beside him. "Come sit." He commanded and she complied, though not at all happily.

Nadja placed a plate before her, but little Kimiko occupied herself with throwing nervous glances over at Wuya. The heylin witch seemed oblivious to Kimiko's nervous glances and continued to twirl a lock of her bright red hair around her finger. Chase, however, quickly took notice of her discomfort and asked what was wrong after swallowing the last sip of his soup. She shook her head claiming that nothing was wrong but refused to meet his eyes. When he ordered her to eat, she shakily refused.

"I don't seem to have an appetite today. I'm sorry." She smiled weakly. He closed his eyes.

"Very well, but if you die of hunger I will not take responsibility." He told her rather coldly.

"U-understood." She stuttered. Chase opened his eyes in time to see her pulling her hands out of her pockets. She climbed out of her chair and bowed. "Excuse me."

She walked out of the dining room, careful not to let show she was anxious to leave. Chase smiled internally. He could see a piece of bread sticking out of her pocket. _Brat,_ he thought, but he understood why she was in such a rush to leave. He turned his attention to the witch sitting across from him. "Why is it that you are here?"

Wuya smiled coyly at him. "My, my, did I interrupt your bonding time with the little brat? And here I thought I would be getting a little sister out of this, but you've never been one to share, have you Chase? My mistake."

Chase hardened his scowl. Wuya straightened herself up. "No need to be so suspicious of me. I only wanted to know how your plan with the little monk was going."

"She is progressing well. That is all you need know." He answered coldly. Wuya pouted.

"That's all? Have you even taught her the ways of the Heylin? I thought that by now you'd have her worshipping you like a dog." She laughed at her own remark, leaning back into her chair. Chase stood up from his chair and glared down at her.

"Leave." He commanded; his voice monotonous. Wuya's face dropped in disappointment, but she stood from her seat nonetheless. She crossed her arms over her chest.

"Oh Chase. You're no fun." When she reached the door she turned to look at chase with her usual sly smile. "By the way, a little birdy told me Hannibal is looking for trouble to cause. Best be on your guard Chasey." She threw her hand up in a lame wave before disappearing behind the door.

Chase's eyes lingered on the door a little longer as the witch's last remark ran through his head. He turned to look back at the table. Kimiko's untouched plate laid next to his empty bowl. He snapped his fingers and a few of his warriors appeared to clear the table. He finally exited the dining hall and headed in the direction of the bedrooms. He would use of what was left of the day to get information out of his little acquaintance.

**Getting closer to revealing little Kimiko's past. Look forward to it. I'll try my best to get the next chapter up. Bye-bye.**


	5. Chapter 5

**I know I know, it's late. I'm sorry. I'm lousy with deadlines. I promise I'll make it up somehow, but for now have this chapter I thought was fluffy.**

Little Kimiko sat on the edge of the massive bed adorned with white silvery colors and drapes of the softest blue. She pulled the bread she had snuck from the dinner table out of her pocket and tore it in two. She tossed one half to Nadja and bit into the other. Nadja took the bread wolfishly before hopping onto the bed with Kimiko. The petite girl giggled. She crawled over to the headboard and pulled a heavy book out from under the pile of pillows adorning it. It was a book a book she had borrowed from Chase's bountiful library. The tiger crawled up next to her to sniff the book curiously. "Would you like to hear a story?"

To answer, the white tiger pressed his head against the girl's cheek. Kimiko pushed his head away and leaned back into the abundance of pillows. "Okay, I'll try to pick a good one." She told the tiger. He simply laid his head on her lap, urging her to continue. She pulled the book open and flipped the pages through inky images and curved letters with much detail. A few seconds of looking through titles, Nadja and Kimiko snapped their heads up at the sound of the bedroom's doors being pushed open.

Chase walked in casually. He made his way to Kimiko's bedside and looked down at the two comfortably accommodated in the bed. Kimiko looked up at him questioningly. He was not wearing his usual armor. Instead, he wore a black turtle neck with army green sweats and what appeared to be moccasins to complete his casual look. "What are you doing?" he asked with boredom. The raven haired girl scooted closer to the white tiger at her side.

"We were about to read a story." She stated simply. There was silence between them as Chase examined the book that had been closed shut on her lap. It was a thick book with a cream colored cover. There were glossy emerald green letters to spell out the title "Grimm's Fairytales." Had he a book like this in his library? It seemed too childish and insignificant to be of any importance to him. At this point, Kimiko decided to interrupt his observations. "uhm, would you maybe like to join us?"

Chase tore his eyes from the book to look at the girl who had posed the invitation. She looked at him with innocent pleading eyes. He gave it a moment's thought before replying. "I suppose I can make an exception for tonight, but do not let this become a habit."

Kimiko gave a satisfied smile and waited for Chase to accommodate himself in the space she had left for him. Once everyone was settled, she opened the book on her lap to the page where the stories were listed and placed an index finger at the top of the page. She closed her eyes then dragged her finger down the page as she hummed. "This one." She said opening her eyes. "Rumpelstilskin."

Chase watched the girl's action with curiosity. She truly was a peculiar child. One moment she was the picture of gloom, then the next she was the picture of a perfectly happy child. _Brat,_ he thought. Kimiko cleared her throat, claiming all attention in the room. She began to read with a soft and composed voice, "Once there was a miller who was poor, but who had a beautiful daughter. Now it happened that he had to go and speak to the King, and in order to make himself appear important he said to him, 'I have a daughter who can spin straw into gold.' The King said to the miller, 'That is an art which pleases me well; if your daughter is as clever as you say, bring her to-morrow to my palace, and I will try what she can do.'…"

Chase had slipped out of the room when he realized Kimiko and Nadja had both fallen asleep. Kimiko had handed the book to Chase halfway through the story, asking him to finish reading it because her eyes were too tired to continue. He moodily complied, much to her delight. She must have fallen asleep sometime after that.

What he thought would be a lengthy story turned out to be quite short with a rather gruesome ending. Rumpelstilskin was a fool and it was his arrogance and foolish ego that brought upon his demise. After skimming through a few other stories he found that most of them were bloody. He looked at the small girl. Was she really into these types of things?

He let out a breath after closing the door of his chamber behind him. The candles in the room lit themselves to provide light in the room. He tugged on the covers of his bed, which despite the rest of his lair was actually a pretty regular size. He had not gotten the information he wanted from his little apprentice, but he had established some much needed bonding. He was still trying to get the girl to warm up to him. Nadja had done a better job of it than him, and to add, the friendship between the tiger and the girl complicated things for him. He hated to admit, but Wuya was right, he was falling behind in his plans. He relaxed into his pillows, allowing his eyes to close.

He was having a dreamless sleep, completely undisturbed. It was the way he liked it. The thick darkness veiling the room made it impossible to see unless you had the eyes of a feline, or a reptile. The comfortable silence told Chase that it would be fine for him to let slumber take him for the night. Chase had gotten a great deal of sleep in and he would have gotten more if not for the stirring he felt beside him. His senses became aware knocking him out of his slumber. He snapped his fingers and the candles in the room lit one after the other. Sure enough, there beside him was a lump hidden by the covers of his bed. He caught a whiff of a familiar scent as he lifted the covers to reveal what hid underneath. His face took on a deadpan expression as his eyes met with what he expected. Little Kimiko looked up at him sheepishly with an ever stupid smile. "Hello." She said mousey.

"What are you doing?" Chase asked with a bit more hostility than he meant to. Kimiko shrunk back, trying to hide her eyes behind her bangs.

"S-sorry. It's just… uh…uhm…have you seen Nadja?" She asked shyly, peering out through her bangs. Chase looked down at the sheepish child with lidded eyes.

"No, I haven't." His tone bored and tired.

"Oh," she said disappointedly, "it's just, he left in the middle of the night, and he hasn't come back since, so I thought maybe…" she paused, "sorry."

"It's fine." Chase assured her with annoyance still evident in his features. The candles flicked, leaving them in the dark again. Chase made a move to get out of bed, only to feel a tug on his shirt.

"Don't leave!"

He whipped his head around, and for a brief second he saw her terrified expression. Realizing what she'd done, Kimiko quickly retracted her hand and stuttered in an attempt to explain her actions. "Wha- n-no, uh you, you see, well…"

Chase leaned forward to, intrigued by the child's actions. A mischievous glint flashed in his eyes. It wouldn't hurt to tease the girl a bit. "Kimiko," he smirked, "are you perhaps afraid of the dark?"

The raven haired girl leaned back blushing madly. "O-of course not! Why should I? That's just…" she continued to babble incoherently, Chase still looking down at her with a pressing smirk. Little Kimiko stilled and looked up at Chase nervously. Sweat formed on her brow from his intense gaze demanding she admit her obvious fear to the dark. "F-fine!" she yelled, sucking in a breath. "So what if I am!? It doesn't make me any less of a strong person, okay!? I am afraid of the dark! I'm terrified! So what?" Chase stifled a laugh at the little one's outburst. "Don't laugh!" she demanded with shaking fists.

Seeing that her demands were not going to be met, she turned away from Chase. Her demeanor went from angry to nonchalant. "Well, since now you know I guess I have no choice but to sleep here with you for the night," she deadpanned, still trying to save face. She plopped down on the mattress, her back still to Chase.

"What?" Chase's eye twitched.

"Since I don't want to sleep alone, I'll be staying here for tonight," she repeated, "so don't leave, okay?"

Chase pinched the bridge of his nose with a sigh. "Whatever." He lay back on his bed. It annoyed him that the tiny brat sleeping next to him could go from shy to bold in a matter of seconds, though her apparent boldness was due to his teasing.

It was no sooner had he acquiesced to her little demand that he had come to regret it. He would scoot to leave space between them, but this only caused her to roll closer to him. And it bothered him. It bothered him that she was so warm despite being so small. It made his body temperature uneven, so went the excuse he gave.

"Got any threes?"

The boys sat on the porch just outside their rooms, card in their hands. "Oh, I do not understand the point of this game," Omi said scratching his bald head. "What does it even have to do with fish?" He asked with a confused expression.

"Yeah, I'm not feeling it either buddy." Raimundo said, throwing his cards down and rolling on to his back. Clay threw his cards down as well sighing.

"I reckon it's about time we turn in now." He said to his friends.

"Oh yes," Omi agreed sullenly, "sleep is much needed." He stood and dragged his feet into his tiny room, closing the curtain behind him. Clay and Raimundo looked at eachother, shrugged their shoulders, and then disappeared into their respective rooms.

It wasn't 'til near midnight that Clay's snoring and Omi's sleep rambling could be heard throughout the dorms' hallways. Raimundo turned on his side, his eyes opening with a mischievous glint. He got out of his mat and covered his pillows with his blankets so it looked like someone was lying there. He stood behind his curtains with a pack slung on his shoulders. He steadied his breathing then slowly pulled the curtain open. Seeing that the coast was clear, he slipped out of his room clutching the pack on his shoulders close to him. He was careful not to make any noise, though his anything but quiet sleeping friends made very well sure that any sound he did make went unheard.

He weaved his way across the courtyard and through the buildings. He pressed himself up against a wall when he heard the steps of the monks on night patrol nearby. Once he assumed it was safe to continue, he moved on forward until coming upon his destination: the Shen Gon Wu Vault. He tip toed inside, holding his breath, as if the smallest breath he let out would get him caught. He looked from side to side, and then ran his fingers across the glinting wind chimes.

A tune followed where his fingers touched and the steps leading to the wu revealed themselves. He was hasty in picking out the wu to take, throwing glances up at the entrance every few seconds. Once he filled his pack with what he needed, he took off towards the south wall: the least guarded wall of the four surrounding the temple. The back was always the least guarded, you think they'd learn. He took one last look over his shoulder before throwing his pack over the wall then proceeding to get himself over the wall as well.

Once on the other side, he took in his surroundings, mulling over his plan once more. He'd take a short nap on one of the trees then set out towards Chase's lair. If it went as planned, he would successfully infiltrate enemy territory and gather information on Kimiko's whereabouts. He had already made up his mind that if Master Fung was not going to assure the wellbeing of his teammates, then he would take matters into his own hands. He tied his pack to the tree branch he'd settled on then leaned back on the tree trunk. He looked up at the white moon through the branches, took in a deep breath, and closed his eyes. He had a long day ahead of him. They all did.

**That's it for this chapter. Merry Christmas, just in case I don't get the next chapter up before Christmas. And if you don't celebrate Christmas, well Merry Christmas anyway! Adieu!**


	6. Chapter 6

**I'm so sorry for the long wait. ****Forgive me. (T.T) Peace Offering on my profile.  
**

Raimundo looked down from the branch he was perched on. Everything was still as the moon began to fall from the sky. He jumped down from the tree wary of his surroundings. His pack swayed against his side. His feet padded on the dirt beneath him. He kept looking over his shoulder for signs that he might have been caught and missed the figure standing before him. He crashed to a stop, causing the figure to turn.

"Clay?" He exclaimed in a whisper. The cowboy tried to hide his face under his hat.

"Rai? What in tarnation are you doin' out here?" Clay whispered back. Raimundo lifted an eyebrow at him.

"I should be asking you the same question." Clay let out a sigh.

"Suppose we had the same idea." He reasoned. Raimundo nodded.'

"Yeah, but it's better if you go back. I can handle this myself." Clay was about to retort when they heard rustling from the nearby bushes. "Great," Raimundo grinded his teeth, "Omi, you can come out now." Omi popped his head out, a nervous bashful smile on his face.

"Oh, hello my fellow friends, I see you too are on a stroll this morning." He whistled attempting to walk past them only to be pulled back by the other two.

"Now hold on pardner, you ain't foolin' no one." Omi let out a nervous laugh.

"No no Clay, I am not trying to fool anyone. I was simply out for refreshing air." He said forcing a smile. Raimundo pinched the bridge of his nose.

"So we all decided to sneak out and visit Chase. I doubt either of you are going back to the temple, so we might as well get going."

"But Raimundo," Omi started, "Master Fung specifically told us not to go there, and disobeying him could bring great consequences." Raimundo looked at him with annoyance. As if he hadn't already thought about that already.

"Gee Omi, why hadn't I thought of that before. Why don't we just go back to the temple before we're caught and forget about Kimiko." Omi gasped at Raimundo's statement, completely missing the sarcasm, then wagged his finger at him and walked around him.

"I did not think you would abandon your friend so easily, but if you are too afraid of being punished then please do go back to the temple. I will take full responsibility in gathering information from Chase Young, even though I am not leader." Raimundo slapped his forehead. This was going to be a long walk.

* * *

Kimiko had woken up to Chase's snores. After changing out of her pajamas, she had taken the liberty of venturing around Chase's lair looking for Nadja. Her steps echoed through the hallways, torches lighting as she passed by. She pushed dozens of massive doors; doors that led to a variety of rooms. There was one with scrolls and one with strange trinkets and one that was completely empty. Most of the doors she tried to push open were either locked or too heavy for her. After a while, worry got to her and she began calling his name softly. "Nadja. Nadja are you there?"

She eventually came upon the room filled with fountains and was greeted by hostile growls. It was the lion that tried to claw her eyes out on her first day here and its posse. Kimiko really didn't understand why this group of cats had this animosity towards her. Most of them were indifferent towards her or would randomly approach her to ask for a stroke of affection, but this particular group went out of their way to make her stay miserable.

For her, though, this had become something normal and she would have continued to walk on by if not for what lay in the middle of it all. Her eyes widened, a gasp escaping her lips, as they found Nadja curled into a ball. She stepped forward shakily. She could see him breathing heavily, and the closer she got to him the more damage she found. His usual white fur was stained with blotches of red. Claw marks on his snout exposed the pink flesh underneath.

The growls she had been greeted with began to sound like laughter. They were laughing. They prided themselves in what they'd done to one of their own. A fierce glare overtook her features. She could handle the hate the group of cats harbored for her, but for them to take it out on someone she held dear was a completely different subject. She would not stand for it.

Her glare hardened. "How dare you! I know you don't like me, but that's no reason to hurt Nadja! It's not his fault! If you hate me so much then come at me!" The massive cats closed in on her, their growls more vicious. "Come on, then! Come on!" She growled back. All at once, the cats pounced.

Kimiko stood her ground, prepared for what came next. When she came face to face with the fangs of a lion she felt herself be swept off the ground. She was in Chase's arms, who at the moment wore a glare fiercer than hers, though not directed at her. He snapped his fingers and the cats fell silent. "Return to your posts. You are to go nowhere near the child." He said. The cats bowed before their master and vanished. Chase looked at the girl in his arms, ready to scold her for her rash actions, but held his tongue when he noticed she was shaking not from fear but from rage. What were more peculiar yet were her eyes. There was something there he'd never quite seen before, not in a human anyway. "Kimiko."

She blinked, her eyes gone back to normal. "What?" she asked more harshly than she meant. Chase set her down and looked at her expectantly. Kimiko could feel his overbearing look but refused to meet eyes. She concentrated on her feet. "They almost killed Nadja." She said. Chase glanced at the white tiger, still tightly curled into a ball. _Pitiful._

"Yes, and if I had been a second longer they would have most likely killed you, too"

"What does it matter? All I ever do is bring harm to those around me anyway." Her eyes were downcast. Chase sighed.

"Why does the well-being of that creature matter so much to you?" Kimiko lifted her head with a stern look.

"He's my friend." Her eyes shifted to the side. "Besides, why do you care? You said so yourself that I'm not your responsibility." He thought she'd forgotten about that. He pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Take your _friend_ back to your dorm. He is to remain there from now on. I want no more of this nonsense to arise." The small girl nodded as she left his side.

Kimiko helped the tiger limp up the stairs. Chase watched until they disappeared. Once their presence left the room, he looked at the spot where she had stood. There were ashy footprints there. "Things have become more complicated."

* * *

Kimiko watched Chase's feet as she followed behind him. He was leading her through a part of the citadel she'd never been through before. As best as she could, she tried to mimic the way he walked: hands on back, chin up, and legs barely bent. She was so busy trying to keep her form she failed to notice Chase had stopped and crashed into his legs. She rubbed her nose. Chase seemed indifferent over what happened.

"Come," he called. Kimiko looked up at him. She had stopped right in front of a doorway. Chase stood on the other side of the doorway, in what seemed to be a garden. It was pretty. That was all she could think. It was pretty, very pretty. But she kept herself from passing through the doorway.

"Can I really?" she twiddled her fingers nervously.

"Yes."

"Are you sure?" Chase nodded. She walked in, her steps incredibly careful. Chase raised an eyebrow at her strange behavior. " I-I've never been in a garden before. Mama never let me. She said it was too dangerous. Chase closed his eyes. She brought up her mother again. Just what kind of relationship did the two have? The more he tried to unravel her, the more mystery she was shrouded in.

"Despite what your mother said you could and couldn't do, you are welcomed to come here whenever you please. This is my garden after all, not hers."

"Oh, I see," she nodded in understanding. She walked around him to get a better view of the place. _Pretty. Pretty. Pretty._ That was all she could think about as she laid her eyes on every flower, tree, and rock in the garden. She dipped her foot in the lily pond and watched the water ripple. Chase followed her with his eyes as she walked from one edge of the garden to the other. He could hear her whispering compliments to every little thing she passed. He sat on a rock, his head perched on his hand.

"Such a strange little girl." He said to himself. After a while she made her way back to him, a lone white flower in her hand.

"Here," She stretched her hand to give him the flower, "for you." Chase took it and turned it over in his hand to examine it.

"What need would I have for this?" he asked. Kimiko stepped back, twirling her hair nervously.

"Oh, I just thought it was pretty, so…" she paused. Chase met her eyes.

"If it's as beautiful as you say, then why pluck it? It will only die and you will no longer be able to admire it." He told her. Kimiko shifted her eyes.

"Guess you're right, but it's better if it dies in your hands while you admire it than to leave it alone and forget about it. It's too sad that way." She said. She nodded her head, as if agreeing with her own statement. Chase lifted his eyebrow, again. His ears twitched and he turned to look at the door. He let out a low grunt.

"It seems we have uninvited guests." He got up. Kimiko rushed to keep up with him as he made his way down the hallways to meet these "guests" she heard him mention. She wondered who they were and how Chase knew they were here. Chase was weird. The way he acted made her think he didn't like these guests, but if that was the case he wouldn't be in such a hurry to greet them. She shook the thought out of her head and sped up a bit, reaching out to grab on to Chase. She hoped the people that came to visit were nice.

**I'm working hard to update faster. I can't apologize enough for the wait. Hope you enjoyed this chapter. On another note, someone asked how I came across this idea for a story. As I feel writing it here may be too overwhelming as i have a bit to say, how would you guys feel about me writing it on my blog and linking it to here? Please review. Makes me feel all warm and fuzzy.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hello. Long time no update. *goes into hiding knowing this story should have been updated a millennium ago* In all seriousness, I do hope you enjoy this update.**

* * *

Despite the fangs bared at him, Omi kept his calm. His hands were tucked away in his robes, his eyes closed, but he was focused. Raimundo held the sword of the storm out in front of him like a shield to keep the large cats at bay. Clay simply stood his ground, his size enough to ward off the cats for a moment. The cats all watched and waited, ready to pounce when found necessary. There grows echoed through the room threateningly at their foes. The monks stood still, unwilling to make the first move. The growls took on a lower tone as they were overpowered by a voice emanating from a distance away.

"What business do you have here, monks?" The monks directed their attentions towards the shadowy figure as he descended the steps before them. They watched with stern looks, Raimundo saying the figure's name through clenched teeth.

"Chase." Said person's steps echoed through the fountain room, making everything else appear quiet. Serene almost, is not for the situation. He stood before them with overbearing haughtiness.

"Well?" he asked, "Are you going to answer? It's bad manner to intrude upon a person's home without purpose." Raimundo scoffed at the word "person". He didn't very much consider Chase a human, so for him to refer to himself as a person made him laugh. Chase snapped his fingers and the cats backed away, allowing for the monks to relax their stance. A hostile silence hung in the air. The opposing sides could only exchange looks of distaste as the monks looked for words to start. Now that they thought about it, they never did plan how they were going to approach Chase on the subject of Kimiko, much less to start throwing accusations at him. Chase lowered his brow, becoming impatient with the lack of words from the monks. "Don't tell me you came all this way just to seethe at me. I'm flattered, but this is stupid, even for you." Raimundo opened his mouth to retort, but Omi stopped him by stepping up with his head held high.

"Chase Young, we are here to gather any information we can that may lead us to the whereabouts of our only female friend, whom, as you may know, has gone missing." He stated with confidence. Chase gave his attention to the youngest of the monks, well, second youngest now, but they didn't know that.

"And how has that brought you here? What information do you intend on getting by invading my home?" he demanded. Omi's confidence shrunk a he had to think how to get any useful information out of Chase without directly accusing him of kidnapping.

"Well," he started dumbly, "we have reason to believe that you may know something about her whereabouts." Chase raised his brows in amusement.

"And just what would lead you to that culmination? Or could this be a thinly veiled accusation?" He said, a smirk threatening to spread on his face. Raimundo snapped. It was obvious he was trying to turn this around on them.

"Don't play dumb. You were the only one there when she disappeared, so of course we'd come to question it eventually." Raimundo pointed out, trying to keep his demeanor cool, but his temperament was surely rising with each passing second. Clay placed a hand on his shoulder at noticing this. The cowboy tipped his hat at the source of Raimundo's temper.

"Sorry there, but it was mighty suspicious that you showed up right when she'd gone missin'." Clay reasoned. Chase let his eyes drop and his smirk widen.

"Yes, I suppose that could arouse suspicion. But still, I'm appalled that you would accuse me of kidnapping," he moped falsely. He raised his eyes at Raimundo. "Even someone as dull as you should know I'm not that low."

"That's it!" Raimundo snapped. "Listen you egotistical freak! If you're keeping her locked up somewhere, or if you've caused her harm in any way, I swear I'll-" Raimundo stopped in the middle of an outburst as a soft and dare he think "cute" sneeze resounded from behind the man he was currently directing his anger at. The other two monks' who had been standing quietly in the background of their friend's outburst now had their interest piqued. All stood in awkward silence, until a soft and seemingly shy voice spoke out.

"S-sorry." It was then that Raimundo noticed the pair of bright blue eyes peering out at them from behind Chase's legs. Chase blinked and looked down to find Kimiko standing behind him. He had almost forgotten she'd been there, clinging to his legs, this whole time. He had to be careful not to let the situation with the monks develop more than it already had. Anymore development could risk revealing her identity and therefore put a crump in his plan.

"Who is that?" All three monks asked simultaneously. Chase turned back to his _guests_ with a look of distaste and sudden hostility. He had to get rid of them. Get them to leave without having to use force, not in front of her anyway. It was too early for that. He looked back down at little Kimiko, softening his eyes.

"This is my apprentice, Hotaru. I do believe you haven't met." He said thinking on his feet. Kimiko looked up at him puzzled. He only gave a nod as reply to her questioning gaze, but that's all she needed to understand what to do. She stepped out from the protection Chase's legs provided and presented herself as confidently as she could.

"Hello," she bowed, "I am Hotaru, pleased to meet you." The monks were dumbfounded. They gawked at the tiny girl before them, unsure of how to react. Since when had Chase had an apprentice? Attempting to gain their composure, the monks finally returned her greeting.

"Oh, uhm… hi." Raimundo waved back awkwardly. Kimiko smiled at them. A simple child's smile, but it was enough to make a blush creep onto the monks' faces. Chase watched the short exchange scrutinizing. It seemed Jack was right for once. They didn't recognize her. It was expected, he thought, since she bared almost no resemblance to her older self. Even he himself hadn't recognized her at first.

Chase cleared his throat gaining everyone's attention. "Well, now that everyone has been introduced, I suppose we could strike a deal." The monks eyed him ssuspiciously.

"A deal?" Raimundo repeated.

"Yes," Chase assured, "and if you meet your end of the bargain I'll assist you in finding your friend in the same shape you lost her." Raimundo and the others tensed.

"What happens if we lose on our end of the deal?"

"Nothing much. I just ask that you don't interfere with any of the plans I set into motion therefore after."

Raimundo stepped closer. "What do you have in mind?"

Chase put a hand on Kimiko's head. "I haven't had a real chance to test her potential. When the next three Shen Gon Wu reveal themselves, I will be there with my apprentice. If you can defeat her twice, I will lend a hand in your search." He stuck his hand with a smirk. "Think you are capable?"

Raimundo hesitated. It was a risk, but if it increased the chance of finding Kimiko, it must be well worth it. He cast a glance at Chase's apprentice. Besides, how hard could it be to defeat her? He took Chase's hand at last.

"Deal."

They shook hands, little Kimiko looking on with gleaming curiosity. Raimundo made his way back to his friends once the deal had been struck, a determined look on his face. "You better keep your word, Chase."

"But of course." He said with the same sly smirk. "Now if you have no other business with me, I have other things to attend to." He turned to disappear into one of the many halls in his home, dragging Kimiko along behind him. He stopped abruptly and said one las thing over his shoulder. "By the way, I wouldn't harm her. I have no reason to."

Raimundo let his statement sink in, usure of what to make of it. Who he now knew to be Hotaru caught his eye as he turned to leave. She waved at him. Raimundo gave her a weak smile and waved back as she disappeared with Chase into the darkness of one of the many hallways. He, Clay, and Omi let themselves out without another word, leaving the room in its usual silence.

* * *

Kimiko pulled on Chase's hand to get her attention. "Chase, who were they? Why did you lie to them about my name?" Chase thought for a moment before answering.

"You could say they're the enemy." He said. Kimiko tilted her head.

"Enemy?" She tilted her head to the other side. "Chase has enemies?" she thought out loud.

"Doesn't everyone?" Chase answered her thought. Kimiko thought about it more.

"I still don't understand what that has to do with lying to them."

"It's solely for my amusement, really." He explained.

"Oh." There was silence between them for a moment. They walked in a pace that was neither fast nor slow. It was a comfortable in between. The lights from the mounted lamps on the wall flickered shadows across their faces. Kimiko spoke up again, quietly but audibly. "Chase?"

"Hm?" She hesitated a bit. She wanted to ask, but she didn't want to seem stupid and ignorant. That would be a nuisance, but she made up her mind at last.

"What are Shen Gon Wu?" Chase stopped. He curled a finger on his chin.

"Yes, I suppose I still have a bit to teach you before then." He met Kimiko's curious gaze. "You seem rather fond of stories. Would you like to hear another?" He saw her face lit up, and he felt a strange satisfaction from that.

"Really?" Chase nodded. He felt her tuck at his hand and he wrapped his fingers around hers without thought. "What's it about? Will there be dragons? Or witches? Is it about magic?" A rough chuckle escaped his throat. He wasn't used to such emotion. She seemed to have forgotten about the monks and her question, her visage having been taken over by childish bliss. Chase nodded.

"You could say it has all that." Kimiko gave him a toothy grin to match her excitement. It was a sudden change of character, like he had observed the previous days. With more bounce in her step, little Kimiko continued walking alongside Chase, trying to learn all she could about the story he hadn't told yet.

* * *

Raimundo and Clay slid down what was left of the cliff from where Chase's lair stood. Omi hopped down between them and dusted himself off. "See, Raimundo? I was correct. Chase had nothing to do with it." He crossed his arms. Clay and Raimundo rolled their eyes

"I don't know," Clay said, "there was somethin' mighty strange about the whole way the exchange went."Raimundo nodded in agreement. He began walking in the direction of the temple.

"Yeah, something about it didn't settle with me." The other two followed behind him. "And where did that little girl come from? Something about her seemed really… familiar, but not."

Omi spoke up. "Yes, it is weird that Chase Young would pick a little girl to fight by his side." He laughed. "Oh, there is no way he could think a little girl will manage to beat us. This must be a distraction for a more elaborate plan." He continued laughing as if he had just told the most hilarious joke in the world. "That is most silly."

Raimundo smacked him, getting him to stop laughing. Omi rubbed the threatening bulge forming on his head. "Ai, that was most uncalled for." He whined. Clay patted Omi's back, urging him to continue walking.

"Sorry little partner, but I think Chase really meant it when he said she was his apprentice. Remember, you ain't ever suppose to underestimate an opponent." Omi scrunched his eyebrows unable to comprehend Chase's actions, but nodded in understanding of Clay's words.

Raimundo stopped abruptly. "Wait. I think Omi was right about one thing." He turned to look at them. "She _was_ a distraction. We didn't get anywhere with Chase. He played us. And, what's more, we made a deal we might come to regret." He threw his arms up as he turned to continue down the path.

"Then let's make sure it's not somethin' we'll regret." Clay tried to reason to cheer his friends up. "We'll train lots as soon as we get back to the temple." Raimundo gave a weak smile.

"Yes!" Omi threw a fist in the air. "Instead, we will make Chase regret striking a deal with me." The others turned to look at him reproachfully. "Uh, I mean us." He smiled nervously.

It wasn't long before the temple came into view, but of course life wouldn't cut them a break, for waiting at the gate was none other than Master Fung with a very reproachful demeanor. It was over for them. They had been caught. Omi broke out into a sweat, very well knowing what waited for them upon arrival.

"What is that word that one says when they know they are to be punished for doing something they know they should have not?"

"Busted." Raimundo replied breaking into a sweat of his own as Clay placed his hat on his chest in a salute to themselves. "The word you're looking for is busted."

Omi nodded. "Oh yes, we are most busted."

* * *

**Ooh, the monks are in for it now. I'm still improving, so please let me know what you thought and stay tuned for next time.**

**Keep rocking.**


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